On the front of its Science Times section, the New York Times (8/4, D1, Goode, Subscription Publication) reports in a 2,500-word story that studies conducted over the past 50 years have shown that isolation in those who are incarcerated “can worsen mental illness and produce symptoms even in prisoners who start out psychologically robust.” The Times profiles the work of social psychologist Craig Haney, PhD, whose interviews of prisoners at California’s Pelican Bay State Prison “offer the first systematic look at inmates isolated from normal human contact for much of their adult lives and the profound losses that such confinement appears to produce.” Prison mental health issue expert and psychiatrist Terry Kupers, MD, “found in interviews of former Pelican Bay inmates…that even years after their release, many still carried the psychological legacy of their confinement.”

Related Links:

— “Solitary Confinement: Punished for Life,” Erica Goode, New York Times, August 3, 2015.

The Kaiser Health News (8/4, Gold) reports that since passage of the “landmark” 2008 mental health parity law by Congress that banned “discrimination in the treatment” of people with mental illnesses, “many families and their advocates complain it stubbornly persists, largely because insurers are subverting the law in subtle ways and the government is not aggressively enforcing it.” For example, some health insurance companies “limit treatment through other strategies that are harder to track,” such as instituting “medical necessity” reviews, a process whereby “insurers decide whether a patient requires a certain treatment and at what frequency.” According to Kaiser Health News, since 2008, “the US government has not taken a single public enforcement action against an insurer or employer for violating the law.”

Related Links:

— “Advocates Say Mental Health ‘Parity’ Law Is Not Fulfilling Its Promise,” Jenny Gold, Kaiser Health News, August 3, 2015.

Some Preschoolers Who Are Picky Eaters May Have Underlying Mental Health Disorders.
The New York Times (8/3, Peachman) “Motherlode” blog reports that a study published in Pediatrics suggests that “moderate selective eating (a.k.a. picky eating) is associated with symptoms of psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder” in preschoolers. Youngsters “with severe selective eating…were seven times more likely to have social anxiety and twice as likely to have a diagnosis of depression compared to children without selective eating habits,” the study found.

The AP (8/3, Tanner) reports that just “three percent of young children studied were that picky.” Researchers looked at some 900 youngsters ranging in age from two to five before arriving at the study’s conclusions.

Related Links:

— “Picky Eating in Children Linked to Anxiety, Depression and A.D.H.D.,” Rachel Rabkin Peachman, New York Times, Augsut 3, 2015.

The Newark (NJ) Star-Ledger (7/30, O’Brien) reports that research suggests that “more than a quarter of the people whose homes were damaged” during Superstorm Sandy “were plunged into some form of mental health distress that persisted two and a half years after the event.” Additionally, “14 percent reported experiencing the signs and symptoms of PTSD.”

The Asbury Park (NJ) Press (7/30) points out that “the Sandy Child and Family Health Study…is the result of face-to-face interviews with 1,000 individuals in the nine most affected counties in New Jersey, a swath that includes Monmouth and Ocean counties.”

Related Links:

— “Study reveals the hidden toll on Superstorm Sandy victims,” Kathleen O’Brien, Newark Star-Ledger, July 29, 2015.

HealthDay (7/30, Norton) reports that a study published in the July issue of the journal Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology found that “adverse reactions to St. John’s wort,” which is “a popular herbal therapy for depression,” appear to be “similar to those reported for the antidepressant fluoxetine,” commonly known as Prozac.

After examining physicians’ “reports to Australia’s national agency” on medication safety, researchers found that side effects included “anxiety, panic attacks, dizziness, nausea and spikes in blood pressure.” In addition, St. John’s wort can react with antidepressants and can “dampen the effectiveness” of oral contraceptives, anticoagulants, “and heart disease drugs, along with some HIV and cancer drugs, according to the US National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.”

Related Links:

— “Taking St. John’s Wort for Depression Carries Risks: Study,” Amy Norton, HealthDay, July 29, 2015.